Sighting apparatus for ordnance.



A. T. DAWSON & G. T. BUOKHAM. SIGHTING.APPARATUS FOR ORDNANGE.

M vwi r I, lllll 6 mm I F. A a

APPLICATION FILED 00123, 1907.

DNA 5 1 Mn #AN #0 7 E 01 5 XGII A. T. DAWSON &-'G. T. BUGKHAM.

SIGHTING APPARATUS FOR ORDNANGB. APPLICATION FILED OCT. 23, 1907.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

A. T. DAWSON & G. T. BUOKHAM.

SIGHTING APPARATUS FOR ORDNANGE.

APPLIGXTION FILED OCT. 23,/'1907 91 3,705

Patented Mar. 2, 1909.

A. T. DAWSQN & G.'T. BUCKHAM. SIGHTING APPARATUS FOR ORDNANUB.

APPLICATION FILED 0GT.23, 1907.

. Patented Mar. 2, 1909.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

. certain new UNTED sTATEs .arN'r OFFICE.

ARTHUR TREVOR DAWSON AND GEORGE THOMAS BUOKHAM, OF LONDON, ENGLAND,

ASSIGNORS TO VIOKERS SONS dz MAXIM LIMITED, OF

LONDON, ENGLAND.

SIGHTIN G APPARATUS FOR ORDNANCE.

Specification of Letters Patent.-

Patented March 2, 1909.

Application filed October 23, 1907. Serial No. 398,717;

To-all whom it may concern:

Be it known thatwe, ARTHUR TREVOR DAWSON, lieutenant Royal Navy, director and superintendent of Ordnance forks, and

GEORGE THOMAS BUCKHAM, engineer, both subjects of the King of Great Britain, residing at 32 Victoria street, Westminster, in the county of London, England, have invented and useful Improvements Relating to Sighting Apparatus for Ordnance, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to sighting apparatus of the kind in which there is a range dial and a pointer so arranged that in imparting angular displacement of the dial relatively to the pointer the proper elevation will be given to the sight to accordwith a particular range. We have already devised various forms of apparatus of this kind in Which'the pointer can be actuated or set from a distance by electrical means (an electric motor for example) controlled from the place or station whence the information reating to the sighting is transmitted, the dial being moved by hand gearing by the sight setting number of a guns crew to bring a setting mark or spot thereon into coincidence with the pointer, in order to set the sight for the particular range indicated by the position of the-pointer. TVe have also devised means whereby in the act of setting the range dial relatively to the pointer, a correction will be automatically made to compensate for alterations in the muzzle velocity and changes in the temperature. of the charges by changing the positionof the pointer, so that in setting the range dial a greater or less angular movement will be imparted to the dial in bringing a particular graduation or which Figures 1 to 6 illustrate the improved form of the calibrating device combined with sighting apparatus in which the electric motor for actuating the pointer is mounted in a casing that is angularly displaceable about the axis of the range dial; Fig. 1 being a face view Fig. 2 a vertical section, and Fig. 3 a horizontal section. Figs. 4, 5 and 6 are diagrammatic views showing the parts in several different positions. Figs. 7 and 8 are detail views of the apparatus to an enlarged scale.

A is the range dial, B the electrically controlled pointer, B the electric motor for ac tuating the pointer, and 0 the actuating wheel of the hand gearing for setting the range dial in accordance with the movements of the pointer, the setting being effected by causing the setting mark or spota to follow the movements of the pointer, and in thus moving to alter the elevation of the sight. The range dial is loosely mounted on a bearing A" forming part of the range dial casing A and is connected by suitable gearing to the pinion A of the sight elevating gear which may be of any ordinary type. The sight elevating worm wheel V is integral with a toothed wheel A that gears with a wheel A keyed to the shaft of the elevating pinion A. The weight of the sight acts on the worm wheel A through the intervention of the toothed wheels A and A", and thus takes up any backlash existing betweenthe rack and the range dial. The said calibrating device co11'1]')1'ises a cam or spiral groove a formed on or in the dial for actuating a roller (5 situated at the end of one arm (Z of a bell-crank lever which IS adapted to swing,

about an axis or bearing (Z on the dial casing. The other arm (1" of the bell crank lever is arranged to receive a sliding block 05 which is adapted to be shifted and secured in any desired position on this arm. The sliding block of is provided with an index piece d (Fig. 7) which may be adjusted by means of a screw A scale is provided 011 the block to indicate the position in which the index piece has to be set for diflerent muzzle velocities, and the arm d is provided with temperature curves which are carefully calculated to give the correct position for the sliding block (1*. The electric motor is carried by a casing Bf, which is pivoted on an extension A of" the bearing A andis capable of bodily turning about the axis of the ran e dial. The'spindle b carrying the motorriven range polnter B passes through the center of the bearing A, A and at its inner end is furnished'with a worm wheel 6* that gears with aworm b which is driven from the motor B through suitable'gearing b". The motor casing is connected to the said sliding block (1 by a linkd which is preferably hinged to an arm B on said mo tor caslng.

When the motor is actuated b an electric current from the distant or sen g station,

it drives the range pointer B through theworm gearing b b and causes it to move angularly about the dial A until it reaches a position corresponding to the required range. The sight is then elevated by the hand wheel C and the sighting gear until the setting markor spot a on the dial arrives opposite ,to the range pointer. During this v movement, the spiral groove 0/ of the range dial imparts movementto the bell-crank lever d d, which in turn imparts angular movement to the motor casing B through the link (1, the am litude of such movement depending u on t e position of the sliding block don t e arm d of the bell-crank lever. If the block is moved inward towards the pivot d of the bell-crank lev'er, so as to bring the center of the contiguous end d of the "link (1 into coincidence with the center of the said pivot as represented in Figs. 4 and range dia 5, the motion imparted to the bell-crank lever by the s iral groove 0/ when the range dial is angul arly displacedby the hand wheel C irom the osition shown in Fig. 4 to that shown in 1g; 5, will not affect the position of the motor casing B and no additional movement will be given to the ointer. If however the sliding block d moved outward or away from the ivotd' movement imparted to the pointer by the motor. In this manner the elevation given to the sight during the movement of the to bring the setting mark a opposite the range pointer, will be increased and the requisite correction for the fall in the muzzle velocity and the change in chargetemperature will be automatically efl'ected..

To make the necessary corrections the index piece (1 is Ifirst set to the muzzle velocity scale and the sliding block then moved along the arm d until the arrow ll on the index curve will de end piece (1 touches the required temperature This block d is secured in position on the arm d by means of the screw (V.

The range graduations are refe'rably. formed upon a separate adjustab e ring attached to the face of the dial A. These graduations are not re uired for ordinary use and are only rovide to meet cases of emergenc as or example the failure of the electrica transmitting apparatus. The said gradu'ations are, so long as the electric motor is in working order, kept covered by a thin detachable steel plate on which is engraved the setting mark a. In some cases the graduations are engraved on one side ofthe detaehable plate and the setting mark a on the other side, so that ,by reversing the plate either the graduations or the setting mark can be exposed to veiw Figure 7 shows the calibrating device set for a muzzle velocity of 2,525 .feet per second and a charge temperature of 7 5 degrees.

What we claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is 1- 1; In sighting ap aratus for guns, the

combination with t e range dial and its ointer, of means for actuat ng said pointer, trom a distance, hand actuated=means for setting the range dial with respect to the pointer and changing the elevation of the sights, and means for automatically varying the relative movement of the range dial and the pointer during the hand setting operation.

combination with t e range dial and its pointer, of a motor controlled-from a dis tance for actuating said pointer, hand actuated means for setting the range dial with respect'to the pointer and changing the elevation of the sights, and means for automat- 2. In sightmg ap aratus for guns, the

ically varying the relativemovement ofthe range dia and the pointer during the hand setting operation.

3. In sighting ap aratus for guns, the combination with t e range dial and its pointer, of an electric motor controlled from a distance for actuating said ointer, hand actuated means for setting t e range dial with respectito the pointer and changing the elevation of the sig matically varying-the relative movement of the range dial and. the pointer during the hand setting operation.

4 4. In sighting ap aratus for uns, the combination with t e range dia and its ts, and means for autoointer, of means for actuating said pointer rom a distance, hand actuated means for setting the range dial with respect'to the pointer and chang'ingthe elevation of the sights, means for automatically varyingi re ative movement of the range dial an the pointer during the hand setting operation and means whereby the extent of such relative movement can be controlled in adcordthe sight setting.

ance with the corrections toibe made in the 5 In sighting ap aratus' for uns,- the combination with t e ran e dia and its pointer, of a motor'controlle from adistance or actuating said pointer, hand actuated means for setting the range dial with respect to the ointer and-changing the elevation of the sights, and means for automatically varying the motion of the pointer during the hand settinlg operation. a g

6. n sighting ap aratus foruns, the combination with the ran e dia and its ointer, eta-motor controlle from a distance or actuating said pointer, hand actuated means for setting the range dialfwith respect to the ointer and changing the elevation of the sig ts, means for automatically varying the motion of the pointer durin the hand setting operatiomand'means W ereloy the extent of suchvariation of the pointers motion can be controlled in accordance with the corrections to be made in the sight setting.

7. In sighting ap aratus for combination with t e,range dia and its ointer, of a motor controlled from a distance ior actuating said pointer, hand actuated means for setting the range dial with respect to the ointer and changing the elevation of the sights, a double armed or bell crank lever of which one armor member engages with a (mm or spiral groove of the range dlal, an adjustable piece mounted on the other arm or uns, the 1 member of said lever, and means whereby the position of the adjustable piece affects the extent of movement imparted to the pointer by the motor during the hand setting operation.

8. In sighting apparatus for guns, the combination with t e range dial and its ointer, of amotor controlled froma distance or actuating said ointer, a casing inclosing said motor and acl dpted to move about the axis of the range dial, hand actuated means for setting the range dial with respect to the pointer and changing the elevatlon of the sights; a double armed or bell crank lever of which one arm or member enga es with a cam 01' spiral groove of the range ial, an adjustablepiece mounted on the other arm or member of said lever, and means whereby in accordance with the position of the adjustable-piece andthe degree of motion imparted to the range dial during the setting of the sights by the hand actuated means, the casing of the motor will receive angular movement and thus affect the extent of motion transmitted to the pointer by the motor.

In testimony whereof we aflix our signatures in presence of two witnesses.

ARTHUR TREVOR DAWSON. GEORGE THOMAS BUOKHAM.

Witnesses;

HENRY KING, OHAs. SOLDENORF; 

